


Forest Blues

by 5ColorsInMyLife



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-02
Updated: 2018-11-02
Packaged: 2019-08-14 16:25:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16496084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/5ColorsInMyLife/pseuds/5ColorsInMyLife
Summary: An original companion story, where Thalia meets a strange man who can change faces the way people change clothes.





	1. A Night To Remember

Everyone knows humans aren't entirely alone in the universe. There are other life forms, what we like to call "aliens", with which we mean anything alive that does not come from our own planet. In other words, a very, very broad term (too broad) for whatever else is out there in the universe. And yet, despite knowing, we still stubbornly deny the existence of anything supposedly alien. Someone who claims to have seen something in the sky is "by definition" delusional or lying. Because it's "impossible". Because it's not rational and maybe too scary, to think that life on Earth may not be the only form of life after all. It's saddening, almost infuriating, to see how narrow-minded people can be.

I know the kind of reaction I would get if I told anyone what happened to me, months ago. Hence why I've dutifully kept quiet all this time. Because how can I ever tell them that what I first thought to be a simple star falling from the sky had actually turned out to be a spaceship. A spaceship with the least credible exterior too, on top of that. And because it happened at night with no one else but me noticing, they'd tell me that I had been dreaming. It didn't matter if I told them that I saw the strangest object flying among the stars, or rather crashing, from my window. That I ran down the stairs and out of the front door, to take a better look and see it head straight for the forest. Let alone that, without a second thought, I ran off after it, into the forest, determined to find it before any trace of it disappeared for good. 

It was once I was among the tall trees of the forest, leaves rustling with the wind, that more rational thoughts were catching up with me and my confidence was beginning to fade, making my steps more hesitant by the second while I still forced myself not to stop. A forest, especially at night, was anything but safe, especially when I had no clue what I was doing or whether this was really worth it. It was even enough to make me doubt what I had seen only minutes ago, but still, I went on, walking deeper into the forest, one part of me hating myself for not bringing a flashlight or my own damn phone, while the other was grateful for the clear moonlight shining through the thick leaves and branches of the trees. it was enough for me to discern a rectangular shape in the distance. It could have been a small house, a cabin.. but I already knew better than that.

Struggling to stay silent as a few branches cracked under my feet, I moved closer, quietly, carefully, uneasy at the thought of being seen, until a door creaked open, and I froze.

I listened, eyes wide open, as though that would suddenly make me see a hundred times better in the dark. And there... among the rustling of the leaves, was the sound of footsteps.

I held my breath and hid behind the nearest tree, leaning forward, perhaps in the vain hope that the shape of my body could be confused with the trunk. I remained still for a while, covering my mouth with my hand in an effort to steady my breathing while I listened more carefully. The footsteps had stopped, or were no longer discernible through the leaves moving with the wind. And maybe hearing nothing was even worse... until I heard a "Hello." right next to my ear.

I jumped and let out a yelp, heart leaping right out of my chest as I stumbled away from the tree and over its roots, grabbing the first branch I could find and could possibly use as a means of defending myself, before turning around to face whoever else was there with the branch tightly in my hands.

"It's okay, I'm nice!" I could barely see the stranger hold up his hands, hear him let out a deep sigh and mutter to himself: "When has that ever worked?" He then brought his attention back to me. "I'd put that down if I were you. You don't really want to hurt someone with it." He pointed to the branch, then brought his hands together in one clap. "Although we're alone... And that means I'd be the one to get hurt... Great."   
  
He sighed.

"Who are you?! What are you doing here?" I said as I took another few steps away from him, and by doing so, I noticed a source of light that hadn't been visible from behind the tree. It came from a box, its shape similar to that of an old phone box, its door left ajar. That was where the light was coming from. I stared at the box in confusion, then at him, eyes darting back and forth between the two. "What's that?" I nodded towards the box. "Do you live there?" Surely I would have known if someone had been living in the forest behind our garden? 

"Okay... I like questions but you'll need to slow down if you want me to answer to all of them..." He held up a finger and made an effort to limit his movements. Suddenly, it hit me that he was as wary of me as I was of him. "I'm The Doctor."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "...The Doctor? Right... Is that a code name or something?"

"A code name? Are you serious? Who do you think I am? Danny Boy is a codename, not The Doctor!"

"I'm the one with the branch, remember?"

"Ah, yes. Which reminds me, I still haven't invented a setting for wood on the screwdriver..."

"A what on the what?"

He shook his head. "Never mind. Go on."

"What's that box over there?"

He looked behind him as if he didn't know what I was talking about. "Oh, that? It's the TARDIS. My... ship."

I tilted my head, frowning. "...Right. I knew there was little chance that you'd be sane but you really,  _really_  are mad."

He nodded. "Madman with a blue box, that's me! Go on, have a look." He smiled.

I took a few steps, hesitated, then turned back to him. "You stay exactly where you are or I swear I'll knock you out."  
  
He took a careful step with his hands raised and nodded, lips pressed into a thin line. "You're the boss."

I stared at him warily for a while longer, before slowly turning towards the box. "But... It  _is_ a phone box... A Police phone box." I muttered, confused, before spinning around at once to face him. "What are you doing with an old police box in the middle of a forest? Did you steal it? Who even steals old phone boxes?! Not that anyone would notice... Maybe that's why."   
  
"Yes! Wait- What?!" He furrowed his eyebrows. "No!" He ran a hand down the side of his face. "No, no! I mean, technically... yes but, no! I didn't just, steal it because I fancy police boxes, I just-" He heaved a sigh and slumped his shoulders. "Fine, I give up. Just... Go have a look inside. Not that that will make things clearer... But just-" He waved his hands about. "Go inside!"

Anyone else would have done the exact opposite of "going inside". Going inside was bound to mean trouble. But somehow, I didn't. I couldn't tell what it was. Maybe it was his weird clothes: his tweed jacket and bowtie. Maybe it was because he himself was so peculiar and made no sense that I found it heard to believe that he truly meant any harm. If he had meant to hurt me, he wouldn't have sneaked up on me only to say "hello". He wouldn't have tried to attract my attention by falling from the sky in his police box. So I pushed the door open just like he said, my jaw dropping as soon as the inside of the phone box became visible.

"But..."   
  
The branch slipped out of my hand as I subconsciously loosened my grip on it. It no longer mattered, not with the room that I had in front of me... It was enormous, and normally,  _normally_ , would have never fitted in a normal phone box.

"It's... it's..."

"It's?" He mumbled right next to my ear. I was too shocked to even move away. 

"It's bigger on the inside!"

He clapped in his hands, cheering loudly. "Could you say it again?"

"What? It's bigger on the inside?"

He laughed. "Thank you!" He went over to the console right at the center of the room and walked around it enthusiastically.

"Are you on your own?" He asked seriously, and maybe running away seemed a rather good idea _after all_. No one could possibly ask a question like that and  _not_ sound creepy.

"Could be. What if I wasn't? My friends could be hiding in the trees." I blurted out.

"In the trees?" He repeated, looking almost shocked. He wasn't actually supposed to believe that. Or maybe it was a good thing that he did. It gave the impression that I had backup, at least. The girl who forgot a flashlight but did think about bringing backup. Absolutely.

"What are they doing in the trees?!" He raised his voice, clearly alarmed, and was about to run outside again, probably to go and get my "friends", when I stopped him.

"I don't know. What is a psychopath doing in the middle of a forest?"

"A psychopath?!" His eyes widened even more, looking very,  _very_ worried. "Where?! Why didn't you tell me sooner? Shut the doors!" He ordered but then rushed towards them himself.

I couldn't help but roll my eyes, the whole scene somewhat comical, and tried to ignore that small part of me that actually found his naivety endearing. He was odd. That was all he was... Yes. Definitely.

"I'm talking about you!" A small smile crept up my lips. A smile. In this very odd and unusual situation. Running away had somehow become a sillier idea than smiling. I must have left my sensible thinking at home. Well, clearly.

He suddenly stopped and looked back at me, raising an eyebrow, utterly confused. "Me? I'm not a psychopath... Why would I be a psychopath?"

"Because... you act like one..."

"I do?" He asked, and I could hear the surprise in his voice, which was followed by a sad glint in his eyes. I suddenly wasn't too sure what I meant anymore, or whether I truly liked how he naively believed everything I said without one moment of hesitation. "Am I scaring you?" He asked cautiously, and I couldn't stop myself; I still automatically took a step back when he took one towards me. He instantly looked down with a faint smile, my reaction giving him all the answers he needed, but if it was his way to try and hide his disappointment, it didn't work. It was so obvious all of a sudden, and so very clear, too, that it went deeper than that. That I wasn't really the one hurting him, because he had already been hurt long ago. I was only the one bringing something back to the surface. Thoughts, memories, maybe... With lingering damage. Something a sad smile couldn't hide.

"Look at me, scaring a... teenager..."

"I'm eighteen..." I whispered, before realising that I _could_ have kept that to myself.

"They're never scared of me usually..." He let out a soft sigh and scratched the back of his head. "Tell me, what is your name?"

"Thalia." ... Another thing I could have easily refused to give.

"It's nice to meet you, Thalia." He smiled a little.

"I hope you're not expecting me to say the same..." I mumbled, but my own stupid smile, however faint, betrayed me.

He chuckled lightly, before shaking his head. I let my eyes wander around the room, trying to take it all in properly, if there was even a proper way to do it.

"It's a... spaceship, right? So it actually travels through space?"

He nodded, suddenly going back to his previous cheery self. There it was again, the playful glint in his eyes, with no trace of remorse or sadness whatsoever. Maybe it had all been an act, or he was already too good at covering it up. 

"And time, too. It's a time machine, too. It can go anywhere you want and anywhen!... That's not a word, I know. Not yet anyway. Ahem. Babbling. And moving on."

"Really...? But-" He nodded in response with a faint "Yep" as his eyes remained locked on me. I kept looking at the console for a long while, the most ridiculous question yet suddenly popping into my mind. 

I bit down on my lower lip, suppressing a cheeky smile as I carried on;

"Can it go back in time? And forwards?"

"Well obviously."

" _Obviously_." I repeated sarcastically, snorting. "And... could you take me to Mars?"

"Oof, Mars is boring. Been there. Done that and- survived, although quite narrowly I must say. I could take you to a million of other places that are way better!"

I smiled, clearly somewhat pleased with his answer, as ludicrous as it sounded. Was I really considering it? Going with him? Was that even sensible? No it wasn't, but nothing I had done until now could in any way be defined as "sensible". So why start now? Who would ever say no to a madman with a box that beat every law of physics ever thought of by men? Who  _could_ ever say no and go back to their lives, pretending that none of this had ever happened? I didn't exclude the possibility of all of it being a dream just yet. But neither did I exclude the possibility of it being real. If I were to follow reason, then believing that this was all a dream was supposed to be the easiest option. Logic forbade the other possibility. But I was only human, and taking only reason and logic into account without my own hopes was impossible. Because I really wanted it to be real. 

"What kind of places?"

"Oh, places you've never been before. Places you would normally never get to see! Places that will keep you staring at sceneries and things like a blowfish for hours! Like your regular tourist if you like, but you'll be  _the_ outer space tourist."

"O-outer space-" I murmured.

If it were only up to me... And if I could suspend logic and reason for as long as I would like, then I would already have made up my mind. But wouldn't this be the easy way out? Away from reality, responsibilities and past and future failures. The thought in itself was so tempting that I already knew that I wouldn't simply settle for one trip. And how long would it be anyway? What would be the consequences for me afterwards? At 18, I still didn't have much of my own. Nothing I could fall back on if necessary. Despite my own hopes and wishes, reason and logic couldn't simply be brushed off.

Even he knew. Surely, he  _knew_  that it could not be done.

"I'm sorry, I-I can't... I have to go back. Maybe I woke up my parents when I left. I don't want them to worry..." I slowly stepped backwards towards the door, already regretting the choice that I was making. But this was his life... Not mine. Not yet. And maybe never again.

I stepped back outside and glanced back at the box one last time. "I need to go." 

"I understand..." He simply said, unaware that I was mostly talking to myself. Trying to convince myself, somehow, that it was okay to let this opportunity go. However tempting, it wasn't meant for me. 

I turned around, ready to leave before I  _really_ messed up the only sensible decision I had made. I loathed reason in that moment. I loathed life and humans for refusing to accept that wonderful things, like a madman with a blue box that was bigger on the inside,  _could_ happen despite reason. Maybe if it had been more okay to believe in those wonders, I would have been able to go with him.

But reason wasn't always going to be the boss of me, I knew that much. 

I looked over my shoulder in his direction one last time.   
  
"Come back someday. Please." I spoke softly, and the smile that instantly spread across his face made it easier to say goodbye.


	2. Forest Blues

I never did see him again after that. But then... It had only been about 7 years. Still, I did what any other "sensible" person would do; I carried on with my own life without ever speaking about that encounter to anyone, but still thinking about it relentlessly.

 

At 25 years old, I was already travelling the world by myself. Some called it being brave, others would call it recklessness, but usually these were the type of people who didn't understand the thrill that came with exploring, discovering remote places where try as they might, men simply couldn't tame nature. That was what I went looking for, while simultaneously in a perpetual state of dissatisfaction, as though there just had to be more out there, wonders beyond this world, out of reach but definitely present, and waiting for humanity to grow enough in order to be discovered at last. Still, there was no real consolation in that thought for me, given that I would be long dead before men could even consider that possibility. So I contented myself with nature in its wildest and most dangerous state, going wherever it called me. I did not mind, but I may as well have been the only one who didn't.

I thought I was alone as I went deeper and deeper into the Black Forest in Germany. The small paths through the wilderness became scarcer as I went further, and that was usually also when I could feel civilisation far behind me and the trees all around me finally waking up, opening up without fearing intrusion. I often found myself being more mindful about my steps and the noise I'd make in their presence than when I was surrounded by human activity.

I thought I was alone this time too, but I wasn't. I had long since strayed from the small walking paths laid out by people before me. There should have  _only_  been me, trees, plants, and wildlife in general. But there it was anyway: the blue Police Box, in the middle of it all, its exterior standing out like a sore thumb because its deep, clean blue was still untouched by nature.

"It can't be..." I let out in a whisper, and stared in silence for another long minute. "You can't be here."

I meant to take a step towards it, but failed. I only felt the lump forming in my throat, heart pounding uncontrollably as I tried to wrap my head around the presence of the blue box. It was there. It was really there. Not just in a dream, but physically there, in the middle of nature. I should have felt the tears coming, but even if I had, I doubted I would have been able to hold them back.

"You can't be here!" I shouted as I leapt towards it at once. I pushed against the door, tried to force it open, but it wouldn't budge.

"I know you're in there!" I repeatedly hit the small windows with my palms, creating a whole cacophony all by myself, and for once betraying the one rule I had always striven to keep; to not disturb nature when I was already an intruder in its deepest locations.

"Get out of there, madman!"

I shouted, until the door flung open at once and a figure with grey curly hair and thick, angry eyebrows, appeared, poking his head out through the opening so quickly that I stumbled backwards and fell flat on my bottom.

"Ow!"

"Are you insane?! Calling out like a madwoman when you're at the very heart of nature?!" He whispered angrily, taking careful steps out of his box as he looked up to the tall trees. A sudden gust of wind made the top of the trees with their leaves move madly in all directions. I had seen it before countless times, how forests would roar to life, but never like this. I was ready to believe that I had truly offended it.

"Sorry! We're sorry! We didn't mean to disturb, we're so, SO very sorry." He pleaded as he kept looking upwards, before pointing his finger at me.

"She's just a curious idiot! A curious  _human_. Still doesn't know how to respect you properly but she's trying! She's really trying! She means no harm, truly. The fact that you didn't feel her presence until now says enough, doesn't it?" He kept on babbling and apologising, until the rustling and the wind calmed down. He eventually let out a sigh, savouring the silence that had returned, and turned all his attention to me.

"You, inside, now!" He whispered again as he disappeared inside his box.

I swallowed thickly, getting to my feet and brushing myself off. I was still too shaken, but for so many reasons, and none made sense. Starting by that man... he wasn't the one I expected. The one I remembered. This one looked so much older, so much... grumpier. It didn't exactly make me want to follow him, but staying here and possibly angering the forest even more felt just as unwise.

I looked up as I quietly made my way towards the box, whispering a well-meant "Sorry..." before entering the box.

"Now, close the door and don't do anything human. Unless it's a comment on the interior of my ship, then go ahead."

"It's... different..." I mumbled as I gazed around the room; the circular things above the central console, the strange patterns all over them. The metal look in general.

"Different?" He furrowed his eyebrows deeply as he turned towards me. "What do you mean different?"

I shook my head.

"Sorry, never mind... I thought you were someone else." I looked down in disappointment. "I didn't know there was more of you. Although I really don't understand that fixation with blue police boxes you have... it's like a sect. A sect of madmen with blue boxes." I nibbled on my lower lip to stop myself from rambling further.

He didn't see too impressed by what I was saying. Instead, he was gazing at me intently, as though my face alone revealed my deepest secrets.

"Do I know you?" He asked.

"What?"

"That other madman of yours, what did he look like?"

"Why?"

He rolled his eyes. "Because I might know him. In some way."

I raised a brow, only partially convinced, but decided to play along anyway.

"Weird hair. Big chin. Bow tie. Tweed jacket." He suddenly turned around with a concerned look on his face at my answer and walked towards the centre of the room.

"Do you... know him...?" I asked, but continued when I got no response. "I only met him once. When I was 18. I saw his box fall down the sky in the middle of the night and I went to look for it in the forest behind my house. He asked me if I wanted to go with him, though I don't think I understood what he really meant at that time. It all felt so surreal... and I told him to come back in two or three years' time... But he never did."

Silence fell all around us as I felt his eyes suddenly bore right through me.

"Thalia." He said, and I held my breath as soon as I heard him. "Thalia. That's your name isn't it? I remember."“How did you…? What do you mean you remember?”

“Tweed jacket, bow tie, raggedy man… That’s all me. Or, was me.”

“Shut up. You look nothing like him. But you’re just as mad, I’ll give you that.” I shook my head, laughing nervously.

“I changed my face. I do that sometimes. Some people change clothes, I do that too, and I also change my face. It’s really that simple.” He shrugged.

I blinked. “It’s really not…”

“Oh, come on. Get a little perspective! You’re on a spaceship slash time machine, in another dimension, and me changing my face is too much?”

I let out a reluctant sigh.

“... Fair enough.” I said quietly as I took the liberty to walk around the room, going as quiet as he was. “Even this room changed…” I noted. “It’s like changing your face wasn’t enough.”

He let out a soft sigh, leaning with his palms against the central console before looking at me sideways. He knew there was something else on my mind. Not simply the fact that his room and his face had changed, that he was nothing like the young, silly, madman I had once met in the woods and threatened with a branch. And whom I had called a psychopath. I would never forget the sad glint in his eyes when I told him he was scaring me. I really had no clue back then that he himself and his box were a wonder. But I had been given enough time since then, to work it out.

“What is it?” I eventually heard him say.

“If you’re him… then why didn’t you come back? Not that you absolutely had to, but…”

I shrugged, trailing a finger across the console surface, careful not to press any dials by mistake, even if it suddenly became very tempting… to have the ship set off and take us wherever it wanted. He looked like the kind of man who would let his ship fly him wherever it saw fit.

“But…?” He insisted.

“I think you know what I mean, don’t you? Why else did we meet in the middle of nowhere?”

It didn’t take him long to smile knowingly, and I couldn’t help but mirror the look on his face.

“Not in the middle of nowhere.” He rectified. “In the middle of life on Earth in its purest form.”

He let his hand slide over the console as he walked towards me, eyes sparkling with whatever wonders they had already seen. Wonders I was dying to see,  _had been_  dying to see for myself.

“Oh, Thalia. I found you here for the same reason you found me. To get away from these silly humans and see what Earth really had to offer, because even if most of it has already been spoiled, some places still amaze you. It gives you hope for something better.”

"I wonder whose fault that is."

I only realised that my smile was growing when it was already too late; it was so genuine that I could no longer suppress it in any way.

“I think I finally found it, though.” I added quietly.

He raised a curious brow. “What?”

“That ‘something better’.”

He broke into a gentle smile, scratching the back of his head. It almost seemed as though he was trying to look modest.

“One last thing, though…” I cleared my throat nervously, knowing that I  _had_  to ask, even if I would be forced to leave afterwards.

“There is no reason for you to accept this. Especially because, well… It’s been over 7 years. And you don’t seem to particularly like travelling with someone... I mean, there was no one with you last time, and there doesn’t seem to be someone with you now… Or is there?”

I paused, looking up for a second, obviously worried that my one free spot on this ship could actually already be taken. And I thought it was a simple enough question. But the look he gave me made it clear that I was mistaken. There was no amusement twinkling in his eyes, nothing left of that teasing smile. All of that had vanished in a split second, and it worried me even more to think that it was because of my words. Perhaps they had sounded more careless than what I had assumed.

“Is… everything okay?” I dared to ask after a while but even then, he already seemed lost elsewhere, perhaps in a memory, or many, many more.

Without a word, he turned the other way to disappear briefly behind the central column while I stayed where I was. Even so, there was no need for me to gape at his face to know. His whole demeanour easily betrayed him again, just like last time with that silly, sad smile of his, and I wondered why I hadn’t noticed sooner.

With a gentle sigh, I finally moved towards him, careful not to startle him. It wasn't hard to figure that this man before me had this tendency to go quiet to think, to feel, and perhaps even to mourn. And I hated to think that I was yet again the cause of it.

“Doctor… I’m no longer 18. You know why I came here, what I came to look for, and what I’ll keep looking for, for years.

My question-  _both_ of my previous questions were stupid… No one likes travelling alone, no matter how many times you change that weird face of yours. I know you don’t. And this world… You know that at some point it will no longer be enough for me. Maybe it already is no longer enough. So, please…”

I waited quietly without taking my eyes off of him, feeling that the last opportunity I would ever have in this lifetime was slowly slipping away from me judging by the lack of reaction. I felt tears well up in my eyes, remember how difficult it had been to listen to reason the first time. When our gazes finally met, his eyes were cold and distant. I felt stupid for believing that a man like him would ever agree to take me with him. I definitely wasn’t the first; it was so evidently written on his face. I wasn’t the first desperate human. Of course not. And I wasn’t going to ask what had happened to the previous ones.

“I have taken so many risks, and I’ll keep taking them, whether I go with you or not. It’s who I am…” I muttered in a trembling voice. At last, I let out a deep sigh filled with regrets, coming to the final conclusion that the wonders of the universe simply were not mine to see.

I gave him a light nod, and even managed a smile, despite the few, ridiculous tears.   
  
"I understand. Even if I don't, I think I can. Thank you, all the same... I wish I had known you better. Bowtie or angry eyebrows."

He still remained absolutely impassive, not even giving his furrowed eyebrows a rest. I slowly turned around and made my way towards the door, wishing I could stop making such a spectacle of myself in front of someone who looked hardly impressed. I reluctantly placed my palm against the door, and gently pushed it open, with my head still lowered.

My feet hit the dusty ground with a muffled thud. But the longer I gazed, the less sense it made to me.

“Wait…” I blinked, staring wide-eyed at the pink sand that was covering my shoes. And then I slowly looked up, seeing nothing that even remotely looked like the forest which we had disturbed earlier with our presence. Instead, there were dunes and dunes of pink sand, and further into the distance, aircrafts flying in all sorts of directions, every new one I could spot bigger and more impressive than the previous ones.

"Wait-" I stared at the remote ships in complete disbelief, slowly letting it all sink in. "WAIT?!"

"Sorry, really." A voice said right next to my ear as the madman walked past me. "I couldn't help myself." He shrugged, but it was too obvious that he was very much enjoying himself and what he had done. 

He turned around at last, the bright smile I had so wished to see on his face earlier finally giving new life to his normal stern-looking face.

"I'm The Doctor, and you, Thalia, have waited long enough."


End file.
